New Zealand woman, 19, dies after suspected shark attack

New Zealand woman, 19, dies after suspected shark attack

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According to local police, the woman was injured in the waters of Waihī beach late Thursday afternoon and died shortly afterwards.

Kaelah Marlow, 19, died in a suspected shark attack on Thursday, according to New Zealand police.

New Zealand police on Friday identified the woman as Kaelah Marlow, 19, from the city of Hamilton, about 391 kilometers (243 miles) from the capital Wellington.

“Initial indications suggest that she may have been injured by a shark,” New Zealand police said in a press release on Thursday.

Police said the coroner will eventually disclose the cause of Marlow’s death.

“We appreciate that his death was extremely traumatic for those who were in Waihī Beach yesterday and we are offering Victim Support services to those in need,” added the police.

People walk near a beach after a suspected shark attack in Bowentown, near Waihī, New Zealand, on January 8, 2021.
Shark attacks in New Zealand are rare. The last fatal shark attack occurred in 2013, when a 40-year-old swimmer was killed on the coast, near the popular Muriwai Beach, west of Auckland.

A non-fatal shark attack last occurred in 2018, according to the New Zealand police website. A man was attacked by a shark and taken to a hospital for treatment.

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